I’ve had my heart stolen—emotions copied by predators
with no understanding of how it feels to be born
already torn/into threads; an identity lost in the many
fragments of prejudice hidden clearly within distorted visions
camouflaged inside the confusion of empty smiles,

and sometimes I feel I tried too hard– to make this world easier
for them; and sometimes I fail to realize I can’t be anybody
except who I need to be and sometimes the ink stays silent
even when my thoughts are crying loud, yet

I’ve found a way to still stand tall proud, I’ve risen
up from beneath the darkest clouds because I tried;
I’ve fought through webs of anonymity finding the necessary
foundations of individuality because I tried;
I’ve walked down streets where failure stands on street corners
with my head up high, not because I was better
but because I tried

and where destruction has cried,
I’ve found a way to battle though the roadblocks of my life
and head down the path of sacrifice
realizing to get to my destination I had to fulfill my own need
and break away  to a place within myself
where I could be freed

and because I tried

I have landmarked the journey where the embrace
of individualism indeed succeed.
© 2011
Tarringo T. Vaughan